More Android Handsets to Sport the iPhone X Notch; LG's Survey Backfires, OnePlus Admits It's the Way to Go
There's more where that iPhone X notch came from, it just won't be from Apple itself.
More Android handsets are adapting the look of the Cupertino giant's most expensive smartphone yet, giving birth to the notion that the devices from this side of the pond are no more than wannabe iPhones or lookalikes.
There will be so many Android devices with notches this year that Google added support for the feature in the next-gen version of the Android software. The latest to sport it is Huawei's P20-series.
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However, OnePlus, who is giving the notch treatment to its next-generation flagship, the OnePlus 6, has gone on record to say the notch is the next move for manufacturers that "makes sense."
The notch frees up a bit of space at the top of the device, which is a design win for OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei, who has been very keen on maximizing screen real estate, as he explained in an interview with The Verge.
"How big a notch is always depends on your choices as a company," Pei told The Verge. "What you are essentially doing is moving the entire notification bar up, giving users more content on their screen," he went on to say.
While Pei points out that the OnePlus 6 is not getting the iPhone X notch for looks, he did admit that "maybe it would have taken longer if Apple hadn't done it. Maybe not as fast," adding that the Cupertino giant tends to "accelerate the adoption of things within the industry."
Seconding the motion gave them the chance to implement the component better on the OnePlus 6. It will be larger than the one on the Essential Phone, the true smartphone that introduced the notch design, and bigger than that of the iPhone X.
The notch on the Apple smartphone has soured the photo and video viewing experience, but the Chinese company is taking that into account by disguising the notch when users are checking their pictures or watching shows or movies on their OnePlus 6.
LG is also expected to follow suit, having showcased behind closed doors a notch-toting flagship at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) earlier this month.
However, the company is not jumping the gun yet, taking to Reddit to ask Android users what they really feel about the notch and gauging their interest.
The original post, which has been immediately deleted after the response turned into a major backlash, reads, "We've seen a LOT of comments around 'The Notch' over the past few weeks, from people who love the quick access to the menu to those that hate the wasted screen space. We would love to gather some more feedback to share with our R&D team – and this is where you come in. So... what do you think? Love the Notch? Or is it Notch your thing?"
Looking at how fast and unpleasant things became in the thread not long after it was posted, it will be interesting to see if LG will move forward with their plans to include a notch in their next flagship from the G-series, which they insist will not be called LG G7.
